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Tuesday, 11 April 2017

Color My Conversation 2nd Edition {Northern Speech Services}

One of my greatest challenges and biggest blessing over the last few years has been raising and educating a child who is articulate and has been gifted with Aspergers Syndrome. Having a student who is equipped with an excellent vocabulary but at the same time pedantic in his expression and understanding within conversations has certainly had it's very challenging moments.

What we received
Color My Conversation comes in a sturdy 14" x 16" box which makes storing and keeping the kit easy and neat. The kit box contains:

12 "Conversation Path" Stepping Floor Graphics

100 Topic Prompt Picture/Emotion Cards

50 Game Tokens

50 Dry Erasable Wall Display Cards

2 Dry Erase Pens

Cloth Ribbon (approx. 9.5ft)

Game Board (foldable) with 4 new Activities on the back

CMC Ball

Classroom Poster

Instructional Manual on CD

12 CMC Songs on CD

Additional Reproducible Worksheets & Activities

I am very impressed with the quality of the materials within this kit. All the boards, display cards, prompt cards etc are made from good quality card stock and are coated in plastic to protect and extend their longevity.

Nathaniel loves the feel of the ball which we use during the conversation to demonstrate passing /taking turns in conversations. This ball is often played with throughout the day at home.

Color My Conversation uses a multi-sensory teaching approach to solidify the concepts of the subtleties of conversational structure with students. It's main purpose is to take your student from a basic greeting all the way to a complex conversation that they are capable of having.

Color My Conversation in Action

How we used it
After looking through the box of wonderful resources I took some time to watch the training videos. I was encouraged to remember that I am the leader and the children are following me. I particularly felt empowered by the introduction to:

Be Intentional - observe and take note of individual and group dynamics. Every personality is unique and every learning style matters.

Be of interest - expressive and animated

Be a curious learner - Your enthusiasm about learning is contagious

Be Flexible - expect the unexpected. Conversations are predictably unpredictable

Be Alert - Watch out for teachable moments throughout your day.

The Manual
All the activities and lessons are easily laid out within the PDF manual contained on the CD within the box. The manual has been designed in a linear fashion so that the current concept being taught is building upon the last one learned. The manual contains everything you need to say and do for every single session.

The program is easily adapted to the specific needs of your child.
Throughout the manual there are note boxes containing specific
instructions on how to set specific and measurable goals for the
students including and specific information for special needs students.

I particularly like how I am reminded to look at my child and take note of his specific design. I was reminded to consider his personality, learning style and what motivates him. I appreciated the list of specific questions aimed at helping me accurately asses and encourage Nathaniel.

Each lesson finishes off with a wrap up in which

the student is encouraged.

Short review of the lesson via two or three questions to prompt them.

Specific Homework Challenge for the week.

The recommended time frame for each lesson is half and hour twice a week or a single forty five minute lesson once a week. We are being flexible as some weeks we have time to do two smaller lessons and other weeks we have time for a longer single lesson.

I like to be flexible in my approach and as such will switch between table work and floor work depending on where Nathaniel is at on the day of our lessons. I have appreciated having the tools which have enabled me to recognise that and enabled me to teach him the skills he needs at the point he is at.

Depending on the lesson and the training module I have at times used the training tutorial module video to start the lesson with Nathaniel. Roasslyn speaks and presents in a clear and concise way which is easy to understand and take on board. At times I have felt her presentation for the lesson is a perfect way to introduce the lesson to Nathaniel. As such I have found the instructional video's indispensable and really have appreciated the time she has taken to put them together.

For the ParentColor My Conversation (CMC) is a dynamic, multi-sensory social skills program developed by Rosslyn Delmonico, MA, RSLP, CCC-SLP, who a Speech-Language Pathologist with over 35 years of experience.

It has been developed to teach the skills of face-to-face conversations and is easily adapted for varying skill levels to help your children navigate the conversation flow, including the greeting, changing topics, WH__ questions, and how to close a conversation.

CMC has been designed to be used over 14-16 weeks. The lessons can be adaptable for any period of time - up to an entire year - as curriculum.

Upon purchasing your product you will be sent an email with links to video's on how to implement and comprehensively use Color My Conversation. Currently CMC provide training video's covering the following:

Training Videos:

Introduction & Section 1: Teaching Methods

Section 2: Getting Started

Section 3: Assessment Tools & Data Keeping

Section 4: Lesson Modules

Individual Lesson Training Videos:Beginner Level

Lesson 1: The Yellow Conversation

Lesson 2: The Short Conversation

Lesson 3: The Long Conversation

Beginner Level Wrap-Up

Intermediate Level
Introduction: Take It To The Table

Lesson 4: Who What When Where Why

Lesson 5: Yes! No! Maybe so!

Lesson 6: Making Comments Count

Lesson 7: Topic Changer Pro

Lesson 8: Speaking Loud & Clear!

Lesson 9: Beading

Intermediate Level Wrap-Up

Advanced Level

Advanced Level

Expert Level

Expert Level

I am a visual/auditory learner and found each of these particularly helpful.

Over All I thought ...
I have learned a lot about the nuances of conversations. The purpose of Color My Conversation is:

Color My Conversation was developed to assist children in their social language development. By establishing strong communication skills it leaves kids with self confidence and empowers them to engage in life. - Rosslyn Delmonico

It's good to see Nathaniel beginning to use the skills he is learning to engage more fully in life and understand the finer points of conversations as they happen. I like the way the program purposes to explain fully how conversations work in a step by step method.

Until now I had never thought about what goes into learning how to carry a conversation. Why is it that some people do it so easily and others struggle? I feel that Color My Conversation is a fabulous resource for every single home. It is a program that not only special needs children need. This is a program that all children should have access to.

With this program your children will not be left to themselves to figure out how to converse with others through trial and error. They will understand different types of conversations and exactly what is expected in each one. Children will no longer be left wondering what to say or how to respond after participating in Color My Conversation.

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I am a Christian homeschool mom of 3 children. I have been home schooling for 18 years and just started again with my youngest child. I enjoy to read and research information. This blog contains a variety of my thoughts and reflections on my journey as Wife, Mother, Daughter, Sister and Friend.

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